Front of the Grid

The 2010 F1 grid is starting to take shape. Only Ferrari and Red Bull are sorted with their two drivers though. We evaluate the rest of the grid, including the four new teams.

An announcement regarding Williams’ line-up is expected on Monday, with Rubens Barrichello and Nico Hulkenberg expected to be announced. Nico Rosberg will then take Ruben’s seat at Brawn.

Kimi Raikkonen said in Thursday’s press-conference that McLaren was his only option, along with rallying (where joining Petter Solberg’s team has been speculated) and a sabbatical. He does not consider Toyota to be an option.

Toyota does not appear to be keen on holding onto Timo Glock and Jarno Trulli. German media reports say that Glock has signed for Renault, while Trulli appears to be looking elsewhere. This leaves Heikki Kovalainen and Kamui Kobayashi for Toyota. Adrian Sutil, Nick Heidfeld and Kazuki Nakajima are also possibilities.

Force India will likely hold on to Sutil and Tonio Liuzzi. Indian Karun Chandhok could race for the team, although boss Vijay Mallya has said that none of his countrymen are good enough for F1. Toro Rosso will probably hang on to Red Bull hotshots Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari. No other Red Bull drivers are really good enough.

Campos look likely to sign McLaren tester Pedro de la Rosa, while Brazilian media says that Bruno Senna has signed for the team. Other candidates include former Campos GP2 drivers Vitaly Petrov, Romain Grosjean and Giorgio Pantano.

Lotus are believed to be interested in Trulli, while Malaysian Fairuz Fauzy could be his teammate. He finished second in World Series Formula Renault 3.5, while Alguersuari finished sixth.

USF1 are struggling to find American drivers with enough experience. Jonathan Summerton is widely rumoured with the team, but I would sign Graham Rahal, who nearly finished fifth in IndyCar this year.

Manor appear to be keeping quiet about their lineup, although Renault tester Lucas di Grassi has said he is close to a deal but waiting for Renault to decide their lineup. Anthony Davidson and Nick Heidfeld are good candidates for the other seat.

Have we missed something? Know of any other drivers close to deals? Leave a comment below.